About Janice

Janice has been a storyteller for over 15 years, and has found that the development of storytelling skills helps her students develop self awareness, self esteem, and core values that lead to improved academic and interpersonal skills.

Both children and adults have participated in storytelling workshops led by Janice over the years. As a result of a workshop presented at The University of Georgia during the Mind Matters conference of 1997, the well known education consultant, Fritz Mengert, sited her work in his keynote speech for that same conference. He said, "Janice Butt knows that 1/3 of all elementary education and 1/2 of all secondary education should be taught as story."

In working for Peace and Justice in the community and the world, Janice has found herself using stories to develop problem solving skills at peace conferences, interfaith services, and Youth Sunday School classes.

One disruptive second grader at Toomer Elementary School in the inner city of Atlanta, after hearing one of Janice's stories only one time, stood before her classmates and related the entire tale using the correct sequence, characters and even verbal inflections. The class listened respectfully and applauded when she finished. Amazing results happen all the time when story and education come together.

Janice has a B S in Music Education from Tennessee Wesleyan College, 1968 and an M A from University of Tennessee, 1972 in elementary education with an emphasis in reading.

Professional Organizations

National Storytelling Network

Southern Order of Storytellers

Founder and Chairperson of Women's Imaginative Guild of Storytellers (WIGS)

Georgia Retired Educators Association

Co-convenor of Interfaith Story Circle,
a group devoted to bringing peace by learning each other's stories

Member of Peace by Peace